The bedrock of normative Judaism has always been strict monotheism—the belief that there is numerically only one God, the God of Israel, whose name is YHWH, usually written as “Yahweh.” This belief in one God is what made a Jew a Jew. It distinguished Jews from their neighbors, who during antiquity were polytheistic.Jews have always believed that their faith is expressed so resolutely in what they call “the Shema.” Recorded in their scriptures, it reads, “Hear, O Israel! The Lord is our God, … [Read more...]

Islamic suicide bombers are increasing in the world, and now they've added a new twist. Two days ago, the Associated Press reported that the previous day, "A female suicide bomber blew herself up Saturday in the southern Russian region of Dagestan, injuring at least 18" people. She detonated her explosives-laden belt in the public square of a city. This 25-year old woman was the widow of two Islamic radicals killed earlier by Russian security forces. Her first husband was killed in 2009, and her … [Read more...]

Part 1 Private first class Kermit M. Zarley Jr. was discharged from the U.S. Army in the spring of 1964. (I still remember my dog tag #: ER18667197.) I had played only two rounds of golf during the past six months of active duty. That didn’t exactly prepare me for the new kind of battle I was about to undertake. I quickly exchanged my black, shiny, lace-up army boots for some colored, golf shoes with metal spikes on the soles. And my green, Army fatigues would now become history. At that time, I … [Read more...]

Part 3: Is the Trinity in the New Testament? Christology developed in the early centuries of Christianity. Writing church fathers of the 2nd and 3rd centuries, called apologists, believed Jesus was God, but to a lesser extent than the Father was, and that Jesus’ divinity was derived from the Father. Also, they had no consensus about the constitution of the Holy Spirit.But all of this changed during the 4th century. In 325, the Catholic Church’s first ecumenical council, held at Nicaea, off … [Read more...]

Yesterday, the U.S. Supreme Court agreed to rule on whether or not the U.S. Constitution allows vocal prayer at government meetings. Such prayer has been a common practice in the U.S. Congress and state governments since the founding of the USA, over two centuries ago.This question has arisen because two women, Susan Galloway and Linda Stephens, have challenged their hometown of Greece, New York, for beginning its governmental meetings with prayer, usually conducted by selected Christian c … [Read more...]

PGA Tour professional golfer Ken Venturi died Friday, May 17, 2013, in a hospital in Rancho Mirage, California. He was 82 years old. Ken had been suffering with various health problems in recent years. He was inducted into the World Golf Hall of Fame only days earlier, though he could not attend.Ken Venturi was one the greatest professional golfers during his days on the American PGA Tour. Six feet tall, slender, handsome, and affable, Venturi had one of the best golf swings I have ever … [Read more...]

C. S. Lewis (1898-1963) was a Cambridge professor of English Medieval literature and a very successful novelist. His books The Screwtape Letters and The Chronicles of Narnia won him many awards and honors. And with his book Mere Christianity (1943), the venerable Lewis became the bestselling author of Christian theology during his lifetime.Lewis wrote another theological book near the end of his brilliant, literary career entitled The World’s Last Night: And Other Essays (1960). In it, he qu … [Read more...]

Part 2: Is the Trinity in Genesis? Most Christians believe in the church doctrine of the Trinity, that God is one essence consisting of three co-equal and co-eternal Persons: the Father, the Son (Jesus Christ), and the Holy Spirit. Many cite three passages in the book of Genesis as their primary Old Testament (OT) support for the Trinity: Genesis 1.26; 3.22; 11.7. And they often refer to them when asserting that Jesus preexisted. These texts are as follows:1.26 “Then God said, ‘Let Us make m … [Read more...]